Don't shoot the moon unless you know you can make it

One of the things I learned during my non-profit management fellowship was the importance of clear expectations in a workplace setting. People need to know what they are empowered to do and where they should draw the line. It prevents confusion, wasted time/resources, and makes a team far more productive. It's surprisingly important and yet many people don't think about it very much.

Today we attempted to get new cable installed in our house. Due to some architectural issues, when the two fellows came in, they couldn't figure out how to approach installing the lines, boxes, etc. They immediately called their boss and we arranged a new appointment. Aside from being disappointed that the cable issue wasn't dealt with, I was pretty impressed. My roommate thought the guys gave up to easily, but I just assumed that that was what they've been trained to do. Neither one appeared to be well educated or in a position to know how to do the complex work needed for the project. They were most likely trained to do exactly what they did. Instead of wasting time and possibly biting off more than they could chew, they assessed the situation, realized it was beyond their skills, and moved on to their next task. I consider that a highly platinum use of labor.